ROMANCE: SHIFTER: Shifter to the Max Collection (Dragon, Bear, Wolf and Panther Shifter Romances) (Paranormal Fantasy Romance Collection)

by C. J. Ayers

  “How am I supposed to get this in him with you two thrashing around like that?" Jack yelled, “I don’t want to hit you by mistake.”

  “Shoot him!” Killian screamed. Jack pulled the trigger and Killian could feel the monster begin to drop. In just a few short seconds, the wolf was gone and Killian found his arms wrapped around a human throat. He took the opportunity to quickly put the injured man in silver cuffs.

  While Killian held fast to the man, Jack pulled out a walkie-talkie of sorts.

  “Please be advised that the shifter has been controlled and the area is now secure. Over.” Jack dropped the walkie into his pocket and examined the gashes on his own body. He placed his hand over the gaping bleeding wounds, and they quickly began to heal. In just a few seconds, there was no sign that he had ever been hurt.

  Jack glanced at Killian and smiled, “Well that was fun.” Killian grunted and handed the small boy over to Jack, who turned his face upwards at the foul smell of the child’s urine-soaked pants.

  Killian looked down at the werewolf. “Well, this isn’t going to end well for you, but at least you don’t have to die today.”

  Ten minutes later, Karyn was seated back the break room, wrapped in a thin blanket. Across the room, the boy she rescued was curled up in his mother’s lap, sucking his thumb and whimpering. Karyn’s eyes latched onto the woman, and she saw her mouth the words, “thank you”. All of her life, Karyn had dreamed of becoming a doctor and saving lives. Today a monster had taken more lives than she could count. Nevertheless, this one small child was alive, and it was at least in part because of her. She wanted to feel happy about that, but the sadness and confusion of everything else she had seen was overwhelming.

  There were so many questions running through Karyn’s head. What was that thing? How had it changed shape? What had made it kill its own mother? Who were these men that looked like humans, but quite obviously were not? The man who had been raked by the monster’s claws seemed to have healed himself fully in a matter of seconds.

  Karyn found herself staring at the other man, the one who had locked eyes on her when he entered the room. She had never seen eyes like his before. His grey eyes seemed to go on forever, and seemed to take in everything all at once. He wasn’t human. She had sensed that almost immediately.

  Karyn suddenly felt the need to walk. She couldn’t just keep sitting there. She was a nurse, and people outside were hurt. She stood up and walked quickly towards the door, leaving the woolen blanket behind. Killian stood against the far wall examining himself. He pressed a cloth to the wound on the back of his head where the werewolf had smashed him against the wall. The cloth came away black as night.

  “When are you going to learn to get out of the way?” Jack snorted to Killian.

  “When you learn to aim. So, probably never.” Killian fired back. “Are the cleanup crews in place yet?” Killian asked.

  “Yeah, they’re setting up the perimeter now.” Jack’s face turned sour as a hand came down hard on his shoulder. He turned away and groaned inwardly.

  “Hello, Caleb,” Jack spat. A blonde haired man, wearing a suit now stood beside him. Caleb was a bear shifter from the demonic response team, and had botched a crucial mission a few years ago. He and Jack had become fast enemies.

  “Tell me, how do a vampire and a healer both manage to get knocked around by one young puppy? You must be getting old, Killian. And all this time I’d thought vampires didn’t age.” Caleb winked.

  “What are you doing here?” Killian asked curtly.

  “Oh, don’t go getting your panties in a bunch, vampire. I’m just lending a hand for the day. Nothing was going on down at the station so they assigned me to this little group for the day. Tell me, did you manage to get anyone killed today? You do that so well.” Caleb smiled.

  Jack suddenly reached out and pushed Caleb hard. “Go find something else to do shape-shifter. Your kind has done enough damage for one day,” Jack barked. Caleb was about to respond when he noticed the blanket draped over the empty chair.

  “Hey, did you boys lose something?” He asked, motioning toward the empty chair with a nod of his head.

  “Shit!” Jack said.

  Jack began to swear as Caleb left the room, smirking. “When is that jerk-off going to stop being such a prick?” Killian sighed.

  Jack’s face appeared to be in a rage. Killian patted Jack softly on the shoulder as he jogged out of the room to go and find the missing woman.

  Killian didn’t have to go far to find the missing nurse. She was down the hall from the break room, bent over an elderly woman with a gash on her leg. Karyn had somehow gotten her hands on a medical kit, and was working quickly to stitch up the wound. Killian stood above her and watched for a few moments, intrigued by the level of grit in the young nurse.

  “Excuse me, miss. I really need you to come back with me. We have medics who can take care of this. I need to get you briefed.”

  Karyn did not even look up from what she was doing. “Not a chance,” she said between gritted teeth. “I am not leaving these injured people to go and sit in a room somewhere.” She continued to work on the woman’s gash, ignoring him totally.

  Killian decided to change tactics. “We’ll make the interview quick. Follow me.” Killian turned and started to walk back to the room. Karyn hadn’t budged.

  “If you want me to go with you, you’re going to have to drag me...and I promise you, I will put up a bigger fight than that werewolf did.”

  Killian paused for a second, caught off-guard. “You know what that thing was?” Killian asked, shocked.

  Karyn sighed as she continued to work on the old lady’s leg. “Yes, and something very strange… it was as if I could see into him or something.” Karyn paused, not knowing how to put her experience into words.

  Killian called for Jack over the radio and then knelt beside the nurse. He was almost blown away by the intensity he sensed in her. The sight of the old woman’s blood was making him salivate, so he instead focused on the nurse.

  Killian waited patiently for Jack to arrive, all while watching the young woman’s competence as she completed her work on the old woman. Killian smelled Jack’s approach and turned.

  “What’s up?” Jack asked, as he stopped in front of the two women.

  “I was going to ask you to heal the old one, but I guess you were beat to the punch.”

  Jack knelt and examined the now closed wound. “She did good work.”

  The nurse was looking in between the two men with obvious questions running through her mind. The officer that had saved her life offered her a hand. She finally accepted and was surprised at how cold his skin was.

  “Officer Killian Marshall,” he said without any emotion.

  “I’m Karyn Rourke - registered nurse.” The two stared into each other’s eyes for a few seconds, each of them trying to measure up the other.

  Jack finally broke the awkward silence. "Uh, why am I here exactly, Killian?” Jack asked. “You called for me, remember?” Killian released Karyn's hand regretfully.

  Killian looked over to Jack mischievously. “Our little do-gooder here is a shadow walker. I thought maybe that might interest you.”

  Jack whistled through his teeth as he turned and looked at Karyn. “Well, I guess I should say welcome to the fold and congratulations. Although, I’m not sure you’re going to feel the same way.” Jack extended his hand. Karyn just stared at him blankly.

  Killian shared a look with Jack. It was never easy when they knew. This meant she would have to go back to Department 99 to face both testing, and realignment. Many people didn’t make it. Killian had a strong feeling that this one would, though.

  “Jack, she’s been through a lot. See what you can do.” Jack walked towards Karyn who immediately took a step back.

  Jack held up his hands defensively. “I’m not going to hurt you, I promise. I’m a healer. I can use the energies in the universe to heal, energize, and even rejuvenate. I just want to help.�
� Karyn looked at Killian. Everything was happening so fast.

  “And you? What are you?” she asked Killian. He stared back at her. "You tell me. What do you see when you look at me?"

  Karyn found herself being drawn into those endless grey eyes again, and was speaking before she could consciously find the words. “Blood. I see lots of blood. But not yours. You’ve killed a lot, but not for a long time it seems. You're very old, and yet something in you is new as well. Moreover, you hurt. You hurt on the inside so much, the only thing you're afraid of is yourself, that you’ll never be good, and that one day you’ll kill again. But what scares you the most," she said, as she looked deeply into his eyes, "…is that you like it.”

  Killian pulled his eyes away from Karyn’s, breaking the moment. "I’m a vampire," he said quickly. It was as though he had ripped off a Band-Aid. Suddenly everything went black and Karyn passed out, sliding to the ground. Killian rushed in and caught her just before she hit the ground.

  Slowly Karyn began to wake up. There was a strange sensation around her head. She began to feel lighter, like all the burdens of the day were being stripped away. She no longer felt tired and her muscles seemed to be relaxing for the first time in ages. She didn’t know how it was possible, but she suddenly felt healthier and more alive than ever before. Jack pulled his hands away. He had healed her.

  For the next hour, Karyn stayed by Killian and Jack’s side. Together, they went from person to person, healing the injured. It was obvious to Karyn that Jack and Killian had worked together a long time. She still couldn’t get over the fact that Killian was a vampire. He went against the grain of everything she had ever heard from folklore. Killian seemed to have a genuine desire to help humans.

  As they neared the front of the building, Karyn noticed barricades had been erected outside. Men in uniform were herding all the people from the hospital into small groups in the lobby.

  “What’s happening?" Karyn asked Killian.

  “They’re being told what happened here, at least a version of what happened that everyone will believe. Soon, the news reporters will be here and we need all of the stories to be consistent. A tornado did all of this.”

  Karyn was lost. “What do you mean…a tornado? This hospital was attacked by a werewolf." Killian was already shaking his head.

  “Karyn, that’s your truth, but it isn’t everyone else’s.” Killian spoke cautiously.

  Karyn seemed angry now. “What is that supposed to mean? The truth is the truth no matter what. I won’t stand by and let you lie to these people. The world needs to know about the real dangers that are out there, not some government cover-up. You are the government, right?”

  Jack shrugged and gave Killian a strange look. " I don’t deal with this part, man! She’s all yours. I’d get her out of here fast though, if I were you.” Jack chuckled.

  Killian grunted as he stared at Karyn. Somehow, he just knew she was going to make this difficult. "Go get the car," he told Jack. Killian placed his hand on Karyn’s arm, hoping he wasn’t going to have to restrain her. “Look, this is going to take some time to explain. Please believe me; I’m trying to act in everyone’s best interest. We are not here to hurt anyone.”

  Karyn’s eyes hardened and she took a menacing step towards Killian. “I have eaten a dead woman’s blood today, watched all of my coworkers get ripped to shreds by some shape shifting werewolf, been traumatized, left alone, passed out... and now apparently I’m being kidnapped! I don’t care if you are the most powerful vampire that ever lived. I am going to tell these people the truth, and if you want to stop me, you’re going to have to kill me!” She spat. There was so much fire in her eyes.

  “Sounds like she has you pegged, vampire." Caleb smiled. “Killing is what you do best, after all.” Caleb laughed an eerie laugh, devoid of anything human. Karyn found herself backing up into Killian's arms. She was angry, but not stupid.

  Killian's arm wrapped tightly around her shoulders and his muscles tensed. “Caleb, you need to let that go, man. I’m sorry it happened, but it has nothing to do with what’s going on right now."

  Karyn watched as Caleb's eyes glowed an eerily inhuman color. “I’ll never let it go, vampire.” Caleb growled. Just then, a news helicopter appeared outside. “Next time,” Caleb pointed at Killian. He then rushed off into a long corridor.

  Suddenly, a car skidded to a stop in front of the building. Jack got out with two other guys that Karyn had never seen before. The men quickly entered the building and pulled her out of Killian's arms. They quickly manhandled her into the car, as she fought them, kicking and punching. From the backseat, Karyn could hear Killian arguing with the two men.

  “That wasn’t necessary. I had it under control.” Killian sounded angry.

  “She’s a shadow-walker, which means she belongs to us.” The voices became too low for Karyn to hear, but she could feel a powerful intensity emanating from Killian, even from inside the car. She didn’t know what was happening, but she did know that once again, Killian was coming to her rescue. Finally, he opened the door and climbed into the back seat with her.

  Jack got in the driver’s seat and took off, nearly hitting one of the men. “Sorry about that!” He called back, out of the window. “I hate those guys,” Jack whispered to himself.

  Karyn watched as Killian shrugged off the effects of his anger. “What was that all about?” She ventured to ask. Without hesitation, Killian reached over and took Karyn’s hand in his. Even though he felt cold to the touch, something in her warmed at the connection.

  “Nothing you need to worry about right now,” Killian spoke calmly. She squeezed his hand tightly and he winced.

  “In case you haven’t noticed,” she said with that hint of steel in her voice again, “I don’t run from the truth. I know you can’t answer all of my questions, but could you please try to answer some?”

  Killian smiled. "I’ll do my best, but this really isn’t my department.

  Karyn smiled back. “I guess I'll take what I can get. What is a shadow-walker?”

  Jack whistled from the front. “Wow. She starts heavy, huh?”

  “Why don’t you mind your own business for a change, Jack? I’m busy back here.”

  Karyn heard Jack mumble under his breath, “That’ll be the day.” Karyn stifled a laugh as she waited for Killian's answer.

  “Simply put, most people in this world can’t see us. They see either a human or nothing at all-- but every once and a while, someone is given a gift. We call those people shadow walkers, because they can see things from all worlds.”

  Karyn startled at the last bit. “Worlds? Plural?” Karyn asked.

  Killian shrugged off her question. “Um, let’s get to that later. Anyway, that woman who died on your table today was from another...place. When you ingested her blood, it probably gave you the gift to see, or maybe you were born with it. Either way, you can never go back. It can’t be undone.”

  There were so many questions running through Karyn’s mind. She feared what the rest of his answers would reveal. She could never go back. She laid her head against the muscular shoulder of Killian and closed her eyes. Maybe the rest of her questions could wait. Killian watched her as her breathing slowed, and she drifted into a restlessly slumber. Karyn had no idea of the danger that awaited them, but hopefully she’d be strong enough to survive.

  part 2

  TRIAL BY FIRE

  Killian sat in the backseat of his Department 99 vehicle, staring intently at the woman who slept with her head pressed against his shoulder. Her blonde hair tumbled loosely across his chest, and her small hand rested casually against his own. He watched this beautiful woman and thought about the strength he had witnessed in her over the last few hours. Shadow walkers were rare enough in this world, but one with her kind of courage was almost unheard of.

  Karyn had barely survived an attack by a deadly werewolf, but instead of running away, she sprinted, headstrong, back towards the danger to save another. Even after
her adrenaline had faded and she was left only with the exhaustion and the trauma of the day—she’d pushed beyond her own needs in order to help the wounded. Killian was astounded by her character, and she wasn’t bad-looking either. Her crystal blue eyes seemed to see straight through him, and caressed something within him that he could not explain.

  Killian looked into the rearview mirror and saw that his partner was staring back at him, ruefully. Jack was the closest thing to a friend that Killian had and they could read each other better than most. There wasn't very much that Killian could successfully hide from Jack, nor would he want to—his feelings for Karyn were no different.

  “That's never going to work, buddy. She's human and you're not. It’s probably best that you get it out of your head right now, before it goes any farther. Besides, she's going to have to go through realignment and she might not make it.” Jack swallowed hard and swiftly pulled his eyes back to the grey road.

  Killian thought about the people who had come through realignment. Some went back to a life of ignorance, and some simply didn't make it and washed out…most went insane. In fact, the asylums had more than tripled with patients from Department 99 over the last two years alone. Only one in every ten people successfully made it through realignment. Killian felt the warmth from Karyn's hand as it seeped into his cold dead skin. He locked eyes with Jack.

  “She’ll make it. I know she will.” Killian swallowed.

  “Whatever you say, chief.” Jack replied.

  Karyn had been pretending to be asleep for the last several minutes as she listened to the two men talk. When she had gotten out of bed this morning, she had known exactly where her day was going to take her. If someone had told her that she was going to be fighting werewolves, evading death, and riding in the backseat of a car with a vampire, she would have laughed. Yet here she was, going to some strange facility to be put through something called realignment. Her whole world has been flipped upside down.